COMMUNITY Recruits James Brolin to Play Winger’s Dad in Thanksgiving Episode

NBC’s Community will feature a holiday family reunion of sorts when Jeff Winger (Joel McHale) comes face to face with his father during the show’s upcoming Thanksgiving episode. In the episode titled “Cooperative Escapism in Familial Relations,” fans will finally be introduced to William Winger, the estranged father whom Jeff hasn’t seen since he was a child. Playing the elder Winger is none other than James Brolin (Marcus Welby, M.D.). Community season four premieres at 8:30 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 19. Hit the jump for more on season four and a set photo of McHale and Brolin.

From EW comes word that Brolin will be joining Community as Winger’s dad. (The set photo comes courtesy of McHale’s Twitter account.) They also give us a look at the Thanksgiving episode’s synopsis:

Shirley (Yvette Nicole Brown) hosts an awkward gathering at her place with the study group, while Jeff winds up at the house of his father, whom he hasn’t seen since he was a kid, and a different kind of discomfort ensues.

Brolin, Barbra Streisand’s husband and Josh Brolin’s father, has made recent TV appearances on Psych and The Defenders and will return to the small screen in the action/thriller series, Blackout.

As for the state of Community, the fourth season will see the return of McHale and Brown, along with Danny Pudi, Alison Brie, Donald Glover, Gillian Jacobs, Chevy Chase, Ken Jeong and Jim Rash. It will also feature guest arcs from Malcolm McDowellandMatt Lucas. Unfortunately, creator and former showrunner Dan Harmon left under circumstances that weren’t ideal and has been replaced by Moses Port and David Guarascio. Fingers crossed that Community remains one of the best shows on TV when it debuts next month.